Emergency Outdoors Medicine and Rescue

12-11-2017 / By: Geoffrey Guy

Whenever you head out into the wilderness
you should carry basic medical equipment, even on a daily basis I always have a
case of band-aids in my pocket for minor cuts, and a more robust first aid kit
in my bag which includes a large wound dressing, CAT tourniquet and extra
band-aids and dressings for minor wounds. These items might save your life in
the event of an accident.

Remember though as we prepare for
emergencies or plan for trips into the wilds we must put some extra thought
into our medical equipment to make sure we are not putting ourselves in danger.
At the very least you should have the following in your medical kit;

Plasters
(band-aids); for minor cuts and lacerations

Antiseptic
wipes; for cleaning wounds

Latex
gloves; to protect yourself from others bodily fluids if you are performing
first aid on someone else.

Pain
killers; for headaches, or to relive the pain from wounds.

Scissors/shears;
for trimming dressings to size or removing clothing from the site of a wound.

Blister
treatment; you’ll be spending a lot of time on your feet so have something for
those blisters.

Compression
bandage; for immobilising and compressing sprains, and strains.

Something like this
is a good start for a daily first aid kit but you would need to add some larger
dressings to deal with bleeding, perhaps from a more substantial
medical kit that you keep at home or in your vehicle.

A Friend in Need

If you are
responsible for others out of doors, perhaps guiding someone on a fishing or
hunting trip, taking a group of scouts or school children into the wilderness
on a field trip or just out hiking with friends you will need a more
substantial medical kit. You should always carry enough medical supplies to
deal with the number of people you are with. If you are all competent and
experienced having everyone carry their own individual first aid kit will be
sufficient but if you are leading a group or have responsibility for others you
should make sure your kit is more substantial. Something like this pro
response kit would be ideal.

Remember as well
to carry something that can help you treat potential traumatic injuries;
perhaps a gunshot wound or other catastrophic injury. The RESQ-med
pack contains everything you will need to provide vital first response care
in case of traumatic injuries. This might be vital for self help as well as
treating others in your team, remember you can’t help others if you are injured
so you MUST treat yourself first in case of emergencies.

Rescue and Shelter

Out of doors
medical emergencies can be complicated by being in remote areas where emergency
services can’t reach easily or by bad weather, cold or potentially in the case
of natural disasters or civil unrest a breakdown in local government and
emergency services.

Because of these
complications you need to consider more than just the treatment of wounds but
how you are going to keep the casualty warm and maybe how to get them out of
the way of further harm. The weather
alert survival kit contains emergency shelter solutions, hand warmers and
other vital equipment for keeping your patient warm and dry as well as the
important medical equipment you will need for performing first aid.

Preparing for
emergencies at home allows you to stock pile slightly heavier equipment and theshelter
in place bucket might not be something you want to pack on a foot
expedition but makes an excellent resource for emergencies at home or to be
stored in a vehicle.

With road
traffic accidents being such a common occurrence nowadays and bug-out-vehicles becoming
more and more popular among preppers being prepared for emergencies involving
vehicles is wise. Keeping something like the Pro
Response 2 Bag, in a vehicle will allow you to deal with whatever emergency
comes your way on the road whether that’s on your daily commute or in the event
of a bug-out situation.

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